Lent 13 - The Temple of God

John 2:18-22

Jesus tells the religious leaders that if they destroy the temple, he will raise it again in three days. The religious leaders misunderstand Jesus and presume that he meant the literal temple, but Jesus was talking about his body as a temple of God.

While Jesus was speaking of raising his own body in this example, his claim reminds us that our bodies too are temples of God. 

As Paul says in 1 Corinthians 6:19-20: “Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.”

God has entrusted humanity with the responsibility to care for all of God's Creation. This does not only include fauna and flora but our bodies as well. To many people, this means ensuring that they remain fit and healthy, but I believe that it goes further than this.

To care for our bodies as temples of God means that we use our bodies to glorify God in all the ways that we can. In our words, thoughts and actions, we try to bring more peace, love, joy and hope into the world. 

It is also important to remember that it is not only our own bodies that are temples of God, but every other person's body who we encounter as well. This realisation should impact the way that we relate to and care for others. 

If we believe that every person that we meet bears the temple of God, then we need to show them love, care and acceptance - regardless of if they look, act or believe differently to us.

Prayer: Compassionate Christ, You lived among us in a human body with all its glories and flaws. Help us to be godly stewards of our bodies, treating them as temples of God just as You did. Help us to remember that Your image is present in every other being that we come into contact with as well. May we honour Your temple. Amen.

Image Source: Kira Heide